Trucking Logistics

The recovery at YRC Worldwide is gaining traction, as the company's regional and national subsidiaries reported stronger profits based on better pricing and freight mix. The company appears poised to emerge from eight years of annual losses, but executives warn its journey isn't over yet.

The U.S. congressional watchdog’s conclusion that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has limited ability to evaluate its controversial hours-of-service rules fuels the fight between the top U.S. trucking lobby and the U.S. Department of Transportation.

A steep drop in fuel surcharges coupled with an increase in driver wages helped drag profit and revenue down at Con-way Freight and Con-way Truckload. Menlo Logistics lost revenue, but managed to increase profit.

Los Angeles-Long Beach is moving slowly toward a dual system of drayage in which some drivers are becoming unionized employees, while others prefer to remain independent contractors. Eventually, the result could be a sufficient pool of drivers to serve the 13 container terminals in the largest U.S. port complex, resulting in service and pricing consistency for the shippers that depend on harbor drivers.

C.H. Robinson reported higher net revenues on land and sea as shippers apparently turned to the largest U.S. logistics company to secure capacity in the second quarter. The acquisition of Freightquote last year contributed to higher net revenue and higher truckload and LTL volumes.